Francesco Molinari became the first major champion from Italy after dominating Carnoustie
Tiger Woods' name shot to the top of the leaderboard at a major again. Ian O'Connor says it's OK to imagine what it would feel like if it's there when Sunday closes.
Recapping the leaderboard for Round 2 of The Open Championship at Carnoustie
An Open Championship at Carnoustie is a grown-man's event. The winning score in 1999 was 6 over, and eventual winner Paul Lawrie shot exactly one score better than 73. The 2007 version was significantly easier (if you want to call it that), but still only five players were better than 5 under on the week. So when I think about a golfer who I think can win this week, I'm thinking about tough, patient, good weather golfers who can drive it both ways off the tee with long irons on to slick, lightning fast fairways. There aren't a ton of golfers who fit that description at a high level, but I have a list of nine from which I think the champion golfer of 2018 will come.
The 147th Open Championship is fast approaching this week, and it should come as absolute no surprise that world No. 1-ranked Dustin Johnson stands atop of the board as the favorite to win the whole thing. DJ opens with 12-1 odds entering the tournament on Thursday, followed closely by the trio of Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler and Justin Rose. Defending champion Jordan Spieth is listed next with two-time U.S. Open champion Brooks Koepka just behind that foursome, and three-time Open winner Tiger Woods sits less than a dozen spots behind DJ.
Former U.S. Open champion Graeme McDowell may miss out on the British Open later this month — though not due to a fault of his own. McDowell flew from Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport to Manchester on Sunday night ahead of Tuesday’s qualifier for The Open at St. Annes, something he needed to do well in to secure his place in the tournament. However, there was just one problem: his clubs didn’t show up.
Where does Jordan Spieth want our expectations to go now? "It seems a bit unfair at 22 to be expecting something like that all the time," he said at last year's Open in a memorably frosty press conference. After it became academic that his chances of winning at Troon had been blown away in the wind, a frustrated Spieth met the media and had clearly had enough. Spieth was asked an open-ended question about where his game and mind were and he, with a refined Spiethian bite, laid into the gathered inquisitors.
At 23, Spieth joins only Jack Nicklaus as quickest to three legs of the Grand Slam
Jordan Spieth has been incredible all week, but now can he finish off his quest for major No. 3?
Grace’s score at Royal Birkdale in the third round was the lowest ever recorded at one of golf’s major men’s championships.
Carnage, which has a long-established knack for dropping in on the British Open, came by and tarried through Friday. It brought morning winds that exceeded 30 mph, flung over here from the brooding sky above the Irish Sea. It brought saturating afternoon rain. It took the Royal Birkdale course and rearranged it from Thursday. It reduced the number of players under par from 39 at sunrise to nine by late sunset up here on the 53rd parallel north. It made the Open seem like the Open. It killed a heap of joy.
The tee times and pairings for Round 2 of the 2017 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale
The Englishman is getting involved at Royal Birkdale
Conditions toughened up here for the second round of the 146th British Open at Royal Birkdale, well, at least for everyone except Rory McIlroy.
There are some familiar names atop the early odds for The Open Championship at Royal Birkdale
A final round 63 that set a new aggregate total major championship scoring record of 264 delivers Henrik Stenson his first major championship on an incredible day at The Open.
Jordan Spieth shot a 3-under 68 in the final round at Royal Troon to snap a streak of 10 straight rounds in major championships without breaking par.
The purse is down compared to last year thanks partially to Brexit.
Bubba Watson's Saturday came undone on the 11th hole when he clanged one off the train tracks
On the past six occasions the British Open has come to Royal Troon, an American left with the Claret Jug.